Brooks County Hospital Awarded VHA Quality Award

Posted on Dec 19, 2013

Brooks County Hospital Awarded VHA Quality Award

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Brooks County Hospital was recently awarded a Leadership Award by VHA, a membership alliance of not-for-profit healthcare providers, at the 2013 Georgia VHA Leadership Expo in Atlanta. The hospital was recognized for their initiative to decrease catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs).

After an extensive peer review process, winners were selected based on documentation of their performance and evidence that implementation of the projects submitted for review produced successful outcomes for patients.

BCH placed second among hospitals in Georgia with less than 49-beds for their submission "Conquering CAUTIs".

“Our hospital-wide initiative involved extensive staff education and a multi-disciplinary approach to reduce the hospital-acquired infection rate by, and to sustain an ongoing target rate of less than 5%,” said June Furney, director of nursing at Brooks County Hospital.

Furney said within six months of implementing extension staff education and new patient care procedures, the hospital-acquired infection rate dropped to 2%, and from November 2012 until June 2013 the hospital was completely CAUTI free.

"Our staff works hard daily to make sure our patients get the highest level of quality care," said Furney. "It's very rewarding to be recognized for our efforts and dedication to improving patient care."